April 15 is the most unpopular date of the year and Americans energized by the Tea Party took to the streets Thursday to display their anger. Their hostility to taxes and big government is being felt throughout the country, including Hawaii, but followers should be leery of hostility exhibited by some of the movement's leaders.

A New York Times/CBS News poll indicates that most Tea Party followers, while angry, are not as extreme as some of their protagonists, including Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., who told a Washington rally, “;We're on to them; we're on to this gangster government.”;

Most Tea Party supporters describe themselves as “;very conservative”; and regard the Republican Party as not conservative enough. But a plurality think Sarah Palin is not qualified to be president. Most say the amount they pay in taxes is “;fair”; and think Social Security and Medicare are worth the cost to taxpayers.

Thursday's demonstrators outside the Hawaii Capitol carried signs saying “;Taxed Enough Already,”; “;Enough is Enough”; and “;Save our freedom, Save the $.”; The estimated crowd of 1,500 included members of the conservative Grassroot Institute and was courted by City Councilman Charles Djou, a Republican congressional candidate.

“;They never look to cut the size of government,”; Dick Rowland, of the Grassroot Institute, said of Democratic state legislators in a speech to the crowd. “;They always look to raise taxes.”;

Actually, legislators and Gov. Linda Lingle are struggling to find ways this year to keep tax increases at a minimum while limiting layoffs to comply with the constitutionally-required balanced budget. Scrutiny, and pressure, will rightly be on them to hold the tax line as the legislative session enters its homestretch.

According to the Times/CBS poll, nearly 90 percent of Tea Party supporters disapprove of the job President Barack Obama is doing and fault his handling of health care, the economy and the federal budget deficit. Ninety-two percent believe he is moving the country toward socialism.

Are the Tea Party members in economic distress? Not really. According to the poll, they are more likely than the general public to describe their financial situation as fairly good or very good.

Are our taxes out of control? The $3.8 trillion in federal, state and local taxes, or 27 percent of U.S. gross domestic product, amounts to nearly $13,000 for every American, two-thirds going to the federal government, says the Washington-based Tax Policy Center. However, taxes in 30 of the world's richest countries averaged 36 percent of GDP, and many European countries exceeded 40 percent. Only Mexico, Turkey, South Korea and Japan have tax rates lower than in the U.S.

The Tax Policy Center points out that U.S. taxes are at their lowest in 60 years. That includes 25 different tax credits over the past year, with no income tax raises for families making less than $250,000. Said Obama: “;You would think they would be saying thank you.”;